Stargate Troopers
by CreepyReaper
Summary: During the Second Bug War the Federation sends its best to find the Lost City of the Ancients. AU
1. Chapter 1

_**First off, I know this sticks pretty close to SGA Rising. So will the next chapter. After that, however, it is going to start diverging. Tell me how I did. This story has been banging around my head for a while and it was interfering with my other stories so I decided to write it out. For the very few of you who actually read this story, let's be honest Starship Troopers crossovers are few and far between; at the time of this writing there are about four different crossovers involving Starship Troopers and all are in a different category. I got off topic, anyway, please review and tell me what you think of it. I really do care **__**how people see my writing.**_

* * *

Pantheon Station

Federal Fleet Headquarters

Location: Earth Orbit

"Colonel John Rico?" A Major in a Federation Fleet uniform asked of a man in a similar uniform sitting alone on a bench. A scar ran down his cheek and he had short brown hair. Colonel Rico looked up at the man and nodded.

"They ready for me?" He asked in a calm voice. The man nodded and motioned for Colonel Rico to proceed through a set of double doors. He pushed the doors apart and came into a large dark room. At the opposite side of the room from the Colonel there was a table with three people sitting behind it.

Colonel Rico came to attention and saluted when he recognized Sky Marshal Brook Hall. When she motioned for him to stand at ease he also saw to her right sat the Commandant of the Mobile Infantry Jurgen Yeltsin. On her opposite side was the Chief of Military Intelligence Juan Lawrence.

Sky Marshall Hall was the first to speak. "Colonel Rico, do you know why you're here today?" She asked. Colonel Rico shook his head.

"No Sir." A small smile appeared on the Sky Marshall's face at the Colonel's formality.

"Colonel Rico, I'm going to save us all some time and assume you haven't heard of Project Giza. That is why you've been called here today. Several decades ago, a device was discovered in an abandoned storage facility in the Old State of Virginia. It was made of an unknown element and had been sealed since before the Disorders. Since that time we have been researching the device. Recently we discovered its purpose."

With his curiosity peaked, Colonel Rico said nothing and waited for her to continue. Instead the Intelligence Chief took over speaking.

"The device, which we have begun calling a 'Stargate' is a transportation device. It works by demolecularizing matter and sending it via subspace to a similar device where it is remolecularized. The whole process is almost instantaneous." Before Chief Lawrence could continue he was interrupted as Colonel Rico asked a question with a very confused look on his face.

"Pardon me, sir, but how could that kind of technology have been created centuries ago?" Chief Lawrence stared back at him with the confident smile of the arrogant who enjoy lording their intelligence over others. Colonel Rico had met many people like him during his career. Fortunately, Commandant Yeltsin answered his question when he saw the look on the Colonel's face.

"Actually, Colonel, it wasn't. The Stargate is not a human creation. The writing found with the Stargate indicate it was created by a race of beings known as the 'Ancients'. Millions of years ago, the Ancients visited Earth. Thousands of years later they left for reasons we still don't know."

"Sirs, I mean no disrespect, but why are you telling me this?" He asked in his military voice. He was becoming more and more confused as they explained further. They were clearly leading up to something and Colonel Rico wanted to know what.

Sky Marshall Hall seemed pleased that he wished to get to the point. "Very well, Colonel. The reason we are telling you this is for a number of years we have been sending teams through the Stargate to explore the worlds on the other side. Many turned out to be Bug Planets but some were uninhabited. Others contained human life that we didn't previously know existed. Roughly a year ago we learned of an Ancient city that was the basis for the legend of Atlantis. We are going to send an expedition to Atlantis soon in the hope of meeting the Ancients and we want you to lead it."

"Why me?" Colonel Rico asked. His recent career hadn't exactly been commended. He'd been reprimanded enough times in the past ten years to reduce a dozen Generals back to private but somehow he kept getting called back.

"Because you're exactly the kind of commander the Expedition is going to need. You think unconventionally, you're flexible, and the people under you tend to respect you." She replied back. "Will you accept our offer?"

He thought for a moment and nodded. "Yes, sir." Sky Marshall Hall smiled as if she'd known exactly what he was going to say before he had even entered the room.

"Good. Your orders are to assemble and retrain a company of soldiers to join you. A number of science and medical staff has already been selected to accompany you." Uh oh. Scientists and Doctors? That meant liabilities. Before he could question it Commandant Yeltsin gave him the reason behind their decision.

"Colonel you may be on your own for a very long time. We're not sure where Atlantis is located but the Gate Address implies it is outside of this Galaxy. If you are unable to return, as we must assume to be the case, you're going to need Doctors and Scientists to help decipher the technology you're likely going to find." The tone of his voice implied that there was nothing the Colonel could do about it.

"Is there anything else sirs?" Colonel Rico asked. Sky Marshall Hall shook her head.

"No, Colonel. That's all for now. You are to immediately begin the selection and retraining process for your Expedition. Dismissed." Colonel Rico saluted the three Officers. When they returned the gesture he turned sharply on his heel and walked out of the room.

* * *

**Three Months Later**

"How close are we, Major Sheppard?" Colonel Rico asked of his second-in-command as they stood watching dozens of soldiers fired at targets on the firing range of Fort Hale. The young Major took a step towards the Colonel and looked down at his clipboard.

"This is the last group of Troopers to arrive. Out of the two hundred we picked, sixty-four failed the evaluation course. The rest are the best of the best. I think we're ready, Colonel."

Colonel Rico looked back at his second-in-command. The Major had spiked black hair and a large scar running down his right forearm was visible from an encounter with a Bug on a planet who's name he couldn't remember.

"Good. I want you to contact Sky Marshall Hall and tell her we're ready." Major Sheppard nodded and began to walk away before Colonel Rico spoke again. "Oh, and call Dr. McKay and ask if he's completed the ZPM interface." Major Sheppard smirked at the remark and saluted before leaving to make the calls.

Doctor Rodney McKay had been working on interfacing the ZPM they had discovered on a planet called New Asia with their Stargate for roughly three months. That would have been understandable, Dr. McKay _was_ a busy man; he was in charge of the Naquadah Generator and Weapons Research Project after all, except for the fact that he constantly claimed he was only days away from interfacing the two technologies.

As he watched the soldiers on the range slowly stop firing he smiled. His troopers were ready. One hundred thirty four combat-tested Mobile Infantry Troopers that he had personnally handi-picked. These were the most elite soldiers in the Federation. He didn't know what they were going to face on the other side of the Gate, but he knew his soldiers were ready.

* * *

**One Week Later**

The Embarkation room at Fort Jackson was packed with the men and women of the Atlantis Expedition. Supplies were packed onto wheeled supply robots and people stood waiting for the Gate to activate. In the control room that overlooked the Stargate Colonel Rico and his Senior Staff were standing around a computer terminal awaiting Dr. Mckay.

Finally, after several minutes, McKay smiled and turned to Colonel Rico. "We're ready. All we need to do now is dial." Colonel Rico was the only one to not smile. Instead he ordered the dialing process to begin and the MALP loaded onto the ramp leading up to the Gate. As the tracked robot made its way to its position, Colonel Rico, Doctors Beckett and McKay, and Major Sheppard walked into the Gate room.

Immediately Rico moved to the base of the ramp and addressed his command.

"If this works the power requirements mean we might not have another shot. So, if we do make a connection, we'll send the MALP through and go. All at once. Right now I'm offering you all one last chance to back out." Colonel Rico looked around the room at the over-two hundred people gathered. No one moved.

"Good. First Squad will go through first and secure the other side. The rest of you will wait for my order before joining us. Clear?" Everyone nodded and the soldiers loaded their weapons. First Squad stepped forward to await the order to go.

Colonel Rico walked to Control Room and nodded to the Gate technician on duty. "Start dialing." Immediately the dialing alarm began to blare and the inner ring of the Stargate started to spin. McKay was standing next to Colonel Rico and was looking at the gate with indifference. Rico looked at him and smirked.

"Calm down, Doc, you're making a scene." Rico said sarcastically. Doctor McKay hesitated before turning his entire torso in the Colonel's direction.

"I've never been so excited in my entire life." His voice was flat but Colonel Rico could tell he actually was excited, even if it was only to see if this would work.

When the seventh chevron engaged, everyone held their collective breath. After the longest fraction of a second of their lives, the inner ring continued to spin before locking on an eighth symbol. When the vortex jumped from the Gate, everyone began clapping and cheering.

Immediately the MALP moved forward into the standing puddle and disappeared. Seconds later the screen in the Control Room that showed the probe's camera and sensor readings came alive.

"What are we looking at?" Colonel Rico asked to no one in particular. McKay sat in one of the empty seats and began going over the readings.

"Telemetry indicates a large room. Atmospheric sensors say there's oxygen, no measurable toxins. Its dark, but we have viable life support." Rodney stood and began walking out of the Control Room and back to the Gate before pausing in front of the Colonel.

"Looks like we're not getting out of this." He said, causing Rico to smirk. He then turned to General Jack O'Neill, the Director of the Stargate Program.

"You have a go, Colonel." He said with a nod. Colonel Rico saluted and ran to the Gate Room and stood on the ramp.

As soon as he secured his helmet he began barking orders. "Okay, First Squad will follow me through the Gate and secure the other side. After I radio its secure, Second and Third Squad will follow. After them the Science and Medical Staffs will go through followed by the rest of the Troopers."

All the soldiers present, Colonel Rico included, loaded their Morita rifles and carbines. Even the nonmilitary personnel loaded their pistols. They had no idea what they were going to find on the other side but the Mobile Infantry always assumed the worst.

The First Squad of soldiers walked up the ramp, rifles up, and stood beside Colonel Rico. Rico looked back one last time and stepped through. He didn't feel himself being pulled apart, atom by atom. Nor did he feel himself transported three million light years through subspace. He didn't feel himself being put back together on the other side either.

What he did feel was enough nausea to make weaker men cry. However, years of service in the Mobile Infantry had hardened him and he was able to maintain his composure. As soon as his sight returned to him he began to search the room he had arrived in for targets.

The room was very dark for a few moments until lights began to come on by themselves. It became apparent that they were standing on a small rise in a large room. On every side several steps led down to lower walkways that led to a number of doors exiting the room.

Directly in front of the Stargate a flight of stairs led to a second story in the large room. As the Colonel walked up them they lit up. At the top of the stairs Colonel Rico walked into what looked like a Control Room. It was filled with strange terminals covered in what he thought looked like Ancient writing.

"Clear!" he called. The rest of his squad who had fanned out in different directions replied with the their own calls of 'Clear'.

Colonel Rico reached his hand up to his helmet and activated his radio. "This is Colonel Rico. Major Sheppard, you are clear to proceed." Rico heard an acknowledgment from his Second. Moments later the rest of First Platoon walked through followed closely by Doctor McKay and his people. Doctor Beckett's group was next through and onto the platform that had become crowded with supplies.. 2nd and 3rd Platoons were the last to come through.

Just before the Gate deactivated a bottle rolled through and Colonel Rico walked down to pick it up. It read '_Les Terrasses_ _2106 Priorat'_. A note was also taped to the bottle.

_Good Luck Colonel Rico. Enjoy the Wine. _

_~Sky Marshall Brook Hall_

Smiling internally, Colonel Rico looked up to watch the Gate deactivate.

"All nonmilitary personnel find an open space and park it until instructed otherwise!" He shouted to the civilians who had begun to get in the way. They obeyed, if somewhat begrudgingly. His troopers had begun to fan out along and explore the immediate area.

Minutes after the soldiers he had ordered to explore left the room his helmet-mounted radio crackled to life.

Looking around, Rico motioned over Dr. McKay and Major Shepperd. The Doctor walked over slowly, all the while looking around in amazement at the technology surrounding them while Sheppard hustled over. When he reached the Colonel and the Major he spoke.

"You called?" He asked.

"Follow me." Rico replied without explanation. Sheppard and McKay walked behind him. They all stopped when they reached their destination a short distance away. Half a dozen MI troopers were already looking up in awe at the sight in front of them.

Over a hundred meters above their heads water sat suspended in midair.

"I'm...Everyone else is seeing this right?" Major Sheppard asked. Rodney nodded and mumbled something incomprehensible. It wasn't until Rico's radio came alive with another voice that the Colonel Rico snapped them all out of their trance.

"Troopers! Move on, you've still got places to secure. Sheppard, McKay, with me." The soldiers saluted and walked away, grumbling too quiet for the Colonel to hear, or so they thought. John and Rodney followed Colonel Rico down several flights of stairs to where Doctor Beckett was standing on a podium surrounded by another MI team.

What appeared to be a hologram woman was speaking.

"Doctor? What is this?" Major Sheppard asked as he entered and the doors once again closed to darken the room.

"Oh, hello there. I just found this little deary. Watch. Its on a loop so you haven't missed much." The people turned their attention to the woman speaking.

"-in the hope of spreading new life in a galaxy where there appeared to be none. Soon, the new life grew and prospered. In time a thousand worlds bore the fruit of life in this form." As she said this a holographic map of the galaxy appeared over her head. What they assumed to represent human worlds, colored blue, covered the hologram.

"Then, one day, our people set foot upon a dark world where a terrible enemy slept. Never before had we encountered beings with powers that rivaled our own. In our overconfidence, we were unprepared and outnumbered. The enemy fed upon the defenseless human worlds like a great scourge until finally only Atlantis remained." The map changed once again as the colors changed to a blood red, indicating the enemy they faced.

"This city's great shield was powerful enough to resist their terrible weapons, but here we were besieged for many years. In an effort to save the last of our kind, we submerged the Great City beneath the ocean. The Atlantis Stargate was the one and only link back to Earth from this Galaxy, and those who remained used it to return to the world that was once Home. There, the last survivors of Atlantis lived out the remainder of their lives. This city was left to slumber in the hope that our kind would one day return." At that the hologram ended and Dr. Beckett stepped off the podium.

"Huh, so the story of Atlantis is true; a great city that sank beneath the ocean. The ancient Greeks must have heard it from one of the surviving Ancients." Rodney said to the group.

"I don't like the fact they got their asses kicked." Colonel Rico replied.

Carson nodded and got back up on the podium as one of the men from the Science Department rushed in and whispered into Rodney's ear.

"Let's see it from the beginning." Carson commanded of the hologram.

"Stop! Turn it off!" Rodney shouted at him in a panic. Everyone turned to Rodney in confusion as he rushed out of the room.

"Power levels throughout the city are dropping like a stone." he said. Stress and worry was becoming more and more clear in his voice.

"What does that mean?" Colonel Rico asked him. Rodney turned around to look him dead in the eye. They could see how serious it was just by his face.

"It means if we don't stop everything we're doing right now, we're dead." Without another word he quickly walked out of the room with the scientist, Peter Grodin, in cose pursuit. Everyone else followed shortly thereafter.

They all but sprinted to the Control room where Rodney immediately began working with the Science Staff on what was happening. Dr. Beckett slowly walked up to him.

"Please tell me this isn't my fault." Rodney sighed and walked to another terminal shaking his head.

"No, look; we've been able to ascertain the city runs on three Zero Point Modules. Two are already depleted and the third is approaching maximum entropy. When it does, it'll die too and there is nothing we can do about that."

"English, doc, English." Colonel Rico said. Major Sheppard nodded his agreement. Rodney sighed in frustration and typed at another console for a moment before turning back. The screen now showed what looked to be a schematic of the city.

"The forcefield holding back the ocean has collapsed to its minimum sustainable levels. As you can see here and here-" he said as he pointed to two illuminated sections of the outer arms, "-where the shield's already failed and the city flooded. It could have happened years ago. This section is likely more protected due to the Stargate but-"

"What happens if the shield fails completely?" Major Sheppard asked, interrupting the scientist.

"Its a matter of when, not if." Colonel Rico immediately ordered his troops back to the Gate room.

"Its not going to be good enough." McKay said.

"Okay, how much time do we have?" Major Sheppard asked. Rodney shook his head.

"Its impossible to say. Could be days, could be hours." Dr. Beckett perked up with an idea.

"What about our own power generators?" Rodney looked at the Doctor in annoyance.

"We're working on it, but even with out most powerful Naquadah generators the math is coming up short."

"So we need to find more ZPMs. How can we do that if we can't search the city?" Colonel Rico asked the scientist, looking for a simple answer.

"If they were here we'd be able to detect them." His annoyance was beginning to get on everyone's nerves.

"Can we use the Stargate?" Major Sheppard probed. McKay waved his hands in annoyance and almost glared at the Major.

"There's nowhere near enough power to open up a wormhole back to Earth."

"What about somewhere in this galaxy?" Major Sheppard suggested. McKay paused.

"Well that's relatively easy. Fortunately, some Ancient technology still uses good old fashion push buttons so we've been able to access the Stargate control system and a library of know addresses in the database."

Rico smirked and activated the radio on his helmet. "First and Second Squads report to the Stargate for immediate embarkation." Walking out of the Control Room, Colonel Rico motioned for Sheppard to follow. When he reached the space in front of the Stargate he looked up at McKay.

"Pick an address and dial." He ordered. Rodney hit a series of keys on the DHD and the stargate activated, much quicker than normal.

Immediately a MALP was launched through the Gate. After about ten seconds, Grodin called down to the almost two-dozen soldiers.

"MALP is reading full viability. There's no activity in the immediate area around the Gate but its completely dark." Without hesitation one of the Troopers walked over to a crate and popped the lid off. He handed each of the soldiers a set of Night-vision Goggles and the Troopers lined up and marched through.


	2. Chapter 2

**This is the chapter where the first major plot difference with Stargate Atlantis arises, so please just bear with me for a few hundred words. Please Review and tell me what you thought of it. And, as I try to say whenever I post, thanks to Hobobillybob for his help Beta-reading. **

Unknown Planet

Unknown Galaxy

As soon as the soldiers exited the Stargate they fanned out just as they had trained to and formed a half-circle. The area around the Gate was flat and treeless. The only cover for a hundred meters was the DHD.

When the Gate deactivated the Troopers changed their formation to a complete circle. When they didn't see any movement through their helmet-mounted NVGs Colonel Rico stood and his men did likewise.

Rico pointed out four of his Troopers and signaled them to stay and guard the Gate. He motioned for the rest to follow him and fan out across the field as they walked cautiously towards the treeline.

At the edge of the forest, Major Sheppard held up his fist to signal the Troopers to halt. Sheppard motioned for one of the Troopers closest to him, a Corporal Ford, and they walked forward slowly, all the while they continued to scan with the flashlights attached to their rifles.

A tree limb snapped and movement in the woods caught their attention. After several tense seconds, a kid came running out into the clearing. Weapons were immediately trained on him. Before anyone could say anything, another kid jumped out and tackled the first to the ground.

As soon as the first recovered he looked up in terror at the heavily armed and armored soldiers. "Please, don't hurt us!" he begged. Before the Major could respond a tall man with long hair came sprinting out of the woods and immediately put himself between the soldiers and children. He held up his hand to show he wasn't carrying a weapon

"Please! They're just playing!" He begged as his eyes took in just how many armed men there were around. Colonel Rico sauntered over with his weapon pointed at the ground, ready to come up at a moments notice, and looked at Major Sheppard.

"Everything okay here, Sheppard?" He asked of his Second. The Major looked up at him and nodded.

"Yes sir, just a couple of kids." As he said that he lowered his Morita to point at the ground as did Corporal Ford beside him. Slowly the adult looked around and stood to face Colonel Rico.

They locked eyes for a moment before he pulled the children off the ground and onto their feet. He turned to Major Sheppard and pointed to himself.

"Halling." Sheppard looked confused and shrugged.

"I don't know what that means." Colonel Rico smirked and looked at Sheppard.

"Its his name." He said matter-of-factly. Major Sheppard looked back at Halling.

"Oh, Halling, its nice to meet you." He said in embarrassment. Halling looked back at the shorter Major.

"Are you here to trade?" He asked, never breaking eye contact. Major Sheppard nodded.

"Trade? Yeah, we're, we're traders." The Major was clearly uncomfortable but decided to go with it.

Halling crouched to look the children in the face and scolded them for playing in the forest after dark. Standing, he looked back to Sheppard.

"Teyla will want to meet with you." He said. Immediately he turned and herded the children back into the forest. The Troopers followed, all the while scanning the forest for targets in case it was an ambush.

Soon the path became lit by freestanding pedestals containing burning dishes. The two childred walked beside the Major and turned to him.

"What's that thing you're wearing?" One of them asked.

"Its a helmet, it protects your head." They mouthed 'oh's and continued looking at him.

"What's with the things on the front?" The other kid with the weird mask on asked.

"They help you see in the dark. Check it out." As he spoke he removed his helmet and handed to the closest kid. He put in on and pulled the NVGs down to his eye. The kid with the mask on demanded to see and tried the helmet on.

"Whoa, can I have it?" He asked hopefully.

"No," Major Sheppard said as he put it back on his head "What's the mask you've got on?"

"This? Its Wraith." The way he said it made it seem obvious. He handed it to Sheppard and he looked at the strange thing.

"Wraith, huh? What's that?" The children looked at each other in confusion as he handed the mask back.

"You don't know? What world do you come from? Can we go there?" The Major just shook his head and chuckled.

"I'm afraid not. I'm from a galaxy far, far away." Before the kids could say anything else the procession, which by now had been joined by several villagers who had been along the path, reached the village. It wasn't much, a collection of tents and campfires.

Halling led them to one tent in particular which looked bigger then the rest. He called inside and was told to enter by a female voice. Halling lifted the tent flap and stepped through then held it open for Colonel Rico,vMajor Sheppard, and Corporal Ford who moved to put their backs against the tent wall.

Halling whispered to the woman who seemed to be the leader that the strangers wished to trade. She looked at them with soft but firm eyes. She was definitely the leader.

"I am Teyla Emmagan, daughter of Tagan." Her eyes had grown suspicious quickly as she peered at the visitors.

"Colonel John Rico, Major Sheppard, and Corporal Ford." He said as he introduced the men. "We have a few, specific needs-" Before he could continue he was cut off.

"We do not trade with strangers." Her voice was full of strength.

"Well then, we'll just have to get to know each other a little better, won't we?" Major Sheppard replied in a calming voice. "Me, I like Ferris Wheels, College Fieldball*, and anything that goes faster than two hundred miles an hour." Teyla looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

Corporal Ford leaned over and whispered into his ear. "Sir, that's not gonna mean anything to them." Without breaking his smile Major Sheppard leaned over for Ford to hear him.

"Feel free to speak up, I'm just trying to break the ice here." Before the Major could go on with his futile self-explaining Teyla spoke.

"Each morning, before dawn out people drink a stout tea to prepare us for the coming day. Would you care to join us?" Major Sheppard looked back to her and smiled.

"I love a good cup of tea. There's another thing you know about me. We're practically friends already." Teyla returned the smile and motioned for the men to sit as one of the villagers began pouring them cups.

After the tea was finished they had gone outside only to see the sun was now up. A trooper who Rico recognized as Corporal Bates motioned him over and handed him binoculars. In the distance Colonel Rico saw what appeared to be an abandoned city.

"We didn't see it until the sun came up." Rico analyzed the area and the buildings and nodded.

"Looks promising. Shelter, nice little valley. Location, location, location." He handed the binoculars back to the Trooper and walked to where Major Sheppard and several of the 'Athosions' as they called themselves, were gathered.

After informing them that they wanted to take a look around the area where the city was a man standing beside Teyla began to look frightened.

"The city of the Ancestors is not safe." Rico looked him in the eye and saw how frightened he was.

"We can handle ourselves." The man shook his head.

"The Wraith will come." They had heard the word Wraith several times already, all of them spoken with fear and dread.

"Who are these Wraith?" He asked the Athosians. Teyla and the man looked between each other in confusion. She peered back at them cautiously.

"We have never met anyone who did not know." Colonel Rico was growing concerned. These people seemed to have a great phobia about these Wraith.

"Well, you have now." Teyla slowly approached.

"If the Wraith have never touched your world then you should go back there." Major Sheppard looked down for a moment before answering her.

"Well we'd like to but we can't. See, here's the thing; we've gotten ourselves into a bit of a bind and we may need a safe place to stay for a while.

"Our people believe that the Wraith will come if we venture into the Old City, but it is a belief we have not tested in some time." Colonel Rico looked at her before walking outside. Major Sheppard and Corporal Ford walked to the edge of the lake the village rested by.

"Even if they don't want to come with, that city's worth a look. Not to mention the possibility that there could be ZPMs there that they don't know or care about." Major Sheppard looked back at Teyla in the tent before looking at Rico.

"What if the Wraith are the enemy the Ancient hologram woman was talking about?"

"All the more reason for us to have a defensible position if we have to abandon Atlantis. Major, I want you to stay here and find out what you can. Ford, go back to the Gate and report we may have found something." Without waiting for their acknowledgments the Colonel walked away.

Sheppard walked slowly back to Teyla and smiled. "Well, I guess its just you and me. And him." He said, referring to the man sitting nearby.

"Your leader has the eyes of one who has seen many terrible things."

"Yeah, well, where we come from we have a bit of a bug problem. It doesn't exactly make for easy living." Teyla looked up at him in confusion before shrugging it off.

"You truly cannot return to your world?" She asked questioningly. Sheppard shook his head. "Then there is something you must see." She then began to lead the Major into the forest.

After a long walk, they arrived at what looked to be the mouth of a cave. Teyla grabbed a torch off the wall and lit it with a strange lighter. Sheppard grabbed his own flashlight off his belt. As he shined the light on the ground something reflected it.

Sheppard reached down and dusted it off. Teyla approached and looked at it. A smile took over her face.

"I lost this years ago. How did you-" She was interrupted in her happiness by the Major.

"It was just lying over there in the dirt. It was reflecting the light." Sheppard grinned and placed it back on Teyla's neck. They then turned and noticed the massive number of pictures dotting the walls.

"Someone's been busy." He said,impressed. Teyla approached the drawings and looked at them closely.

"The drawings in the cave are extensive. Many must date back thousands of years." Major Sheppard then noticed one that looked like it had space ships on it.

"Does this represent the destruction of your city?" He asked as he pointed at the specific tile. The Athosian shook her head.

"This drawing far predates that." Confused, Major Sheppard looked back at her.

"So, what, somebody knew it was gonna happen?" His companion shook her head in reply.

"I believe it happens again and again. The Wraith allow our kind to grow in numbers. Then, when that number reaches a certain point, they return to...cull their human herd. Sometimes a few hundred years pass before they return. The last great Holocaust was five generations ago. But still they come, in smaller numbers, to remind us of their power." Her voice was solemn, recounting the sufferings of her people.

"Its a hell of a way to live." Sheppard replied.

"We move our hunting camps around, try to teach our children not to live in fear. But it is difficult. Some of our people can sense the Wraith coming. That gives us warning. We should go, it'll be dark soon." With that she started the long trek back to the village.

Back at the Stargate Corporal Ford, who had joined the four Troopers who Colonel Rico had assigned to watch the Gate, radioed in when the Chevrons activated.

"Colonel we have Gate activity here." Almost as soon as the Puddle formed a strange elongated craft flew out of it at high speed which was quickly followed by another two. Their course set them towards the village.

"Colonel, three bogies headed your way." Colonel Rico reacted immediately and began issuing orders to his soldiers.

"Take cover! First Squad move to the treeline!" The Athosians had begun to run and scatter away from the village. A number of villagers were running near the Colonel when the whine of the strange craft grew louder.

In front of his eyes, a white triangle of light came down from the craft and enveloped the three Athosians. When the light disappeared, they were gone. As the Colonel raised his Morita at the retreating aircraft he ordered his men to fire.

Gunfire joined the sounds of screaming as the Troopers attempted to take down the strange plane. Even with the sights added to the rifles before their departure from Earth, the soldiers couldn't hit the fast-moving target. Out of the corner of his eye, Rico saw a strange shadow move. When he tried to shoot it, his bullets passed right through it.

Major Sheppard's voice came over the radio saying that the apparitions weren't real and they should be firing on the ships. Rico immediately redirected him soldiers' fire to the craft overhead.

One of his Troopers responsible for carrying their missile launcher was looking around in panic at the ghostly visions. Rico calmly walked up to him and turned him around by the shoulder.

"Fire on those goddamn ships, Trooper, or I'll kill you myself!" He screamed in the man's terrified face. That seemed to snap him out of it because he then immediately turned the launcher on one of the closest ships. The missile soared out of its tube and left a trail of white exhaust in its wake.

The explosive arced up and impacted against the side of the aircraft and it exploded. Burning wreckage rained down on the village.

Major Sheppard and Teyla came running into the village in time to witness Colonel Rico and two of his Troopers barely escape a beam of light that attempted to abduct them. Armor piercing rounds tore through the ship and it began to trail smoke before crashing a short distance from the village. The only surviving ship left made a b-line for the Gate.

"Corporal Ford, the last ship is coming towards you. Take it down!" Colonel Rico yelled into his radio. The familiar sounds of gunfire and the light from an explosion lit up the sky.

The villagers who had been running for safety paused and looked at the sky before looking back at the soldiers. The Troopers were still searching for targets when Rico radioed Ford.

"Corporal, are you sure there were only three?" The Colonel couldn't see Ford nod.

"Yes, sir. I think we're clear." The villagers began to cheer loudly. Teyla jogged over to Colonel Rico. She was forced to push her way through her people to the small grouping of somewhat confused Troopers.

"What the hell is going on?" Colonel Rico asked of the smaller Athosian woman. He was forced to shout to be heard.

Teyla smiled and looked up at him. "Our people have not witnessed a victory against the Wraith in generations." The celebration was suddenly interrupted by a short burst of gunfire.

"Report!" Colonel Rico said as he tapped the transmit button on his helmet.

"Sorry sir, but you may want to see this. We're at the crash site east of the village." Rico recognized the voice as that of Sergeant Ace Levy, one of his oldest friends and the leader of Second Squad. He had dispatched him to investigate the sites and look over the debris.

Rico moved towards the dull light from burning wreckage east of the village with two of his Troopers trailing him. Their weapons were up and scanning. When they entered the clearing the crashing ship had carved in the forest they saw five troopers standing around a body. Their weapons were pointed at it even though it wasn't moving.

"Ace, what the hell happened?" he asked, walking towards the limp body. When he got close enough to see it in detail he froze momentarily. The body on the ground was a sickly pale green. It had long white hair and strange slits on his cheeks.

"What the f-" Rico was interrupted when the creature on the ground opened its eyes. Rico held up his hand to show them not to shoot but he pointed his Carbine at it.

"Move and die." Rico's voice was cold and full of conviction. It reached for something on its wrist and one of the Troopers kicked it in the side of the head . Hard. When it stopped moving Rico leaned down and felt its neck on the off chance it had a pulse point there.

To his surprise he felt a pulse and ordered one of his soldier's to restrain it. "Take it back to the Gate." The soldiers nodded and began carrying the monster back to the Stargate on a stretcher. Rico followed them and dialed the Gate when they returned. Before stepping through he radioed Major Sheppard to take temporary command until he returned.

Rico walked through the puddle alongside the soldiers who were carrying the prisoner. On the other side, there was one noticeable difference. When they had left, the supplies had been somewhat orderly in their arrangement. Hasty, yes, but now some crates were lying completely on their sides. When he saw the soldiers step through the Gate, McKay moved to a balcony that extended from the Control Room.

"Ah, Colonel, please follow me. I have something very amazing to show you!" Rodney shouted. Confused, Rico trailed the scientist led him to a set of doors near the top of the stairs in front of the Gate. When they opened, McKay practically rushed outside. Rico walked outside as well, though more slowly. Instead of seeing the hanging ocean above them as he suspected he would, he saw bright blue sky extending in every direction.

It took the Colonel a moment to recover before he turned his attention, but not his eyes, back to the Scientist. "What the hell did I miss?"

* * *

***Fieldball; the game that was similiar to football being played early in the first Starship Troopers film. **


End file.
